The symmetric group $\mathcal{S}_n$ acts on the power
set $\mathcal{P}(n)$ and also on the set of
square free polynomials in $n$ variables. These
two related representations are analyzed from the stability point
of view. An application is given for the action of the symmetric
group on the cohomology of the pure braid group.

Let $F$ denote a binary form of order $d$ over the
complex numbers. If $r$ is a divisor of $d$, then the Hilbert covariant
$\mathcal{H}_{r,d}(F)$ vanishes exactly when $F$ is the perfect power of an
order $r$ form. In geometric terms, the coefficients of $\mathcal{H}$ give
defining equations for the image variety $X$ of an embedding $\mathbf{P}^r
\hookrightarrow \mathbf{P}^d$. In this paper we describe a new construction of
the Hilbert covariant; and simultaneously situate it into a wider class of
covariants called the GÃ¶ttingen covariants, all of which vanish on
$X$. We prove that the ideal generated by the coefficients of $\mathcal{H}$
defines $X$ as a scheme. Finally, we exhibit a generalisation of the
GÃ¶ttingen covariants to $n$-ary forms using the classical Clebsch transfer principle.

We prove a characteristic free version of Weyl's theorem on
polarization. Our result is an exact analogue of Weyl's theorem, the
difference being that our statement is about separating invariants
rather than generating invariants. For the special case of finite
group actions we introduce the concept of \emph{cheap polarization},
and show that it is enough to take cheap polarizations of invariants
of just one copy of a representation to obtain separating vector
invariants for any number of copies. This leads to upper bounds on
the number and degrees of separating vector invariants of finite
groups.

Let $L$ be a simple algebraic group and $P$ a parabolic subgroup
with Abelian unipotent radical $P^u$. Many familiar varieties
(determinantal varieties, their symmetric and skew-symmetric
analogues) arise as closures of $P$-orbits in $P^u$. We give a
unified invariant-theoretic treatment of various properties of
these orbit closures. We also describe the closures of the
conormal bundles of these orbits as the irreducible components of
some commuting variety and show that the polynomial algebra
$k[P^u]$ is a free module over the algebra of covariants.